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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · race · deal · mine · fall · pop

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. pop — music
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. pop — to visit
  6. fall — the season
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pop — soda
  11. race — humankind
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — for digging
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. race — the arms race
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. deal — to handle

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com